Hurricane Emily (2023)
Hurricane Emily was the strongest storm ever recorded in the Atlantic basin and the 4th strongest in recorded history. It was known for very widespread devastation in the Caribbean and the Gulf Coast and for causing over 6,000 Fatalities. These fatalities, combined with over 100 billion dollars in damage, made Emily one of the worst hurricanes in recorded history. (Note: this storm does not go with my actual 2023 season) Meteorological History Abnormal Formation The origins of Emily can be traced from, oddly enough, a depression in the East Pacific. Once this depression organized, it managed to cross into the Atlantic, where it then began to show strong signs of convection. It intensified into Tropical Storm Emily in under 12 hours, and it developed an eye only 20 hours after that, prompting an upgrade to hurricane status. It then was expected to peak as a C3. Rapid Intensification Emily soon entered an area favorable for intensification and began to rapidly deepen. Just before its Florida landfall, a record low pressure of 878 mbar was recorded, making Emily the strongest Atlantic storm in history. It then made landfall on Florida at this intensity, only weakening slightly during the 14-hour passage. This caused an extreme storm surge of 14 feet, a record high. And things were not helped by 190 mph winds and record rainfall. Florida was destroyed all over again, after Hurricane Tobias in 2016. After this, Emily entered the Gulf of Mexico and began to re-intensify. It then reached a secondary peak of 901 mbar as it made landfall in Louisiana, with 165 mph winds and near-record rainfall. After this landfall, Emily finally began to weaken as it moved inland. Final days Emily managed to remain a minimal hurricane as it moved through America, and finally began to weaken in Michigan. It then passed over Lake Huron, making landfall as a Depression in Canada. It finally became a remnant low as it entered the shield, and dissipated on August 19. Impact Caribbean & Bahamas Emily was a category 4 hurricane passing through this region, pounding it with 145 mph winds and intense rainfall. Haiti was flooded by a storm surge, covering the entire region in 5 feet of water. However, this surge quickly retracted, but it carried 100 people (at least) out to sea. Florida Florida was devastated, as Emily hit at peak intensity. The storm surge was tremendous, at over 10 feet of water rushing onto the coast. Several large buildings collapsed due to these waters, combined with the high-speed winds. Florida also was hit by huge amounts of rainfall, but only 300 fatalities came from Florida. Louisiana Emily caught Louisiana completely off guard. More strong winds and storm surges pounded this state for almost a day. Several hundred people were carried out the sea by the surges (which were at their strongest here) of 20ft or more. Hundreds more would be squashed by buildings that fell over. 5,500 people died in Louisiana. Eastern United States The states had to deal with C1 Emily, even Michigan did. Due to Emily moving slowly over the continent, 500 fatalities have been recorded in this area. Michigan recorded wind speeds of 80 mph and received around 8 inches of rainfall. Retirement Due to its impact, the name Emily was retired. It will be replaced with Elise in the 2029 season. Category:Category 5 Atlantic hurricanes Category:Destructive storms Category:Cyclones Category:Retired storms Category:Retired Names Category:Future storms